The City of Falls Church is number 17 in a new list ranking the best small towns in the country to live, work and play, according to a press release Monday.
In its inaugural Top 100 Best Small Towns list, Livability.com evaluated more than 12,000 towns and cities with populations between 1,000 and 20,000, with more than 40 data points analyzed and then broken into eight categories ranging from demographics, real estate and health care to social and civic capital. The scores were then weighted based on a survey conducted where respondents were asked what mattered the most to them in their communities. Results were then used to determine the relative importance of each category.
On a scale of 1-100, Falls Church, with a reported population of 12,731, $120,000 median household income and $660,900 median home price, received scores of 66 in Economy (#8 overall), 47 in Health Care (#92), 64 in Housing (#35), 68 in Social and Civic Capital (#50), 87 in Education (#22), 73 in Amenities (#65), 60 in Demographics (#57) and 74 in Infrastructure (#15).
According to a synopsis on the Livability.com web site, “Living in Falls Church comes with a premium, but residents here are treated to well-maintained parks, excellent schools and top health care. Known as one of the richest cities in the country, with a median annual household income of around $115,000, Falls Church has an extremely low poverty level. Parents applaud schools in Falls Church, especially those within the Falls Church City Public Schools, the city’s largest employer.”
The top ranked town on the Livability list is Lebanon, New Hampshire with a population of 13,367, $52,231 median household income and $235,400 median home price. Williamsburg was the only other Virginia town to make the list, ranking #38, while Takoma Park (#32), Bel Air (#42) and Easton (#77) were included from Maryland.
